


Lost in the Waves

by SweetbunThorn



Category: Persona 5
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, M/M, Mer AU, Ryuji is a hybrid fish boy, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-12
Updated: 2019-05-11
Packaged: 2019-06-09 07:04:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 10,010
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15262017
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SweetbunThorn/pseuds/SweetbunThorn
Summary: “Shit.” Ryuji hissed out as another wave of pain flowed through his body. “I-I can’t keep goin’ like this.”





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> *looks around*
> 
> So.... Mer AU

Vast shades of blue stretched as far as the eye could see as rays of sunlight managed to breach past the watery surface. Marine life of various species and color floated aimlessly around, changing direction every now and then. A gray, black, and white merman with a large dorsal fin and white spins stretching from the back of his neck to the bottom of his tail fin sat up top of one of the large rocks formations covered in moss. He lazily flicked his tail and watched the vast amount of fish swim past. A few moved closer to nibble at his black hair, but quickly discovered it wasn’t food and moved on.

The merman stretched and yawned, digging his claws into the structure and watching as bits of debris floated upward. Ryuji rolled over onto his back, closing his eyes as the sun rays hit his scales and skin. His brown eyes quickly opened and he shot up, startling the fish away as he whipped around. A shadow passed above him, dangling a couple of shredded pieces of Tuna and Mackerel behind it. Ryuji quickly swam after it, pupils engulfing the brown just as he sank his teeth into the meat.

He tore off the fish and swiftly ate it whole before doing the same to the remainder of the prey. Ryuji chirped happily at the meal, completely obvious to something shiny being pointed at his back. Sudden pain exploded from his back and he cried out in pain as he was pulled up to the shadow. Ryuji squirmed, pulling at whatever had lodged its way into his side in a frantic state. He whipped his body around, watching as the surface came closer and closer.

The merman moved quickly, sinking his sharp teeth into the rope and started chewing through it until it snapped. He floated down until he hit the ground in a plume of sand; the shadow stalled above and fired another metal hook at him. Ryuji struggled to get up and swam away in time just as it stuck into the ground. Another one flew at him and he barely managed to avoid it just as he fell into the trench nearby. The merman hid himself until the shadow moved on; clearly losing interest in the mer. Ryuji sighed in relief; it had no way to smell him out.

He looked down at the thing prodding from his side, just above where flesh met scale. It was hooked deep into his skin and he gave it an experimental tug, only to hiss in pain. Maybe Ann or one of the others could remove it. The merman swam up, wincing with every push of his muscles as he headed towards where he last saw them. Ryuji ignored the sluggish feeling and continued on. He swam pass various colonies of fish, watching as they sped away and sent up a flurry of bubbles.

The mer swam above them, staggering slightly. Mists of blood trailed off of Ryuji rapidly as he continued, nearly swimming headlong into the sandy ground. With a push and a growl, he ascended away from the seabed, aggravating the wound in his side. The rays of light hit the weapon, causing it to reflect and alert any predators to the creature.

“Shit.” Ryuji hissed out as another wave of pain flowed through his body. “I-I can’t keep goin’ like this.”

The dark haired creature hit the seabed with a plume of sand surrounding him. The merman struggled to get up, arms shaking, only to whine as he plopped down back into the ground.

“G-Guess this is it…” Brown eyes slipped closed just as a shadow passed overhead.

No sooner had Ryuji fallen unconscious, he was picked up in the net that the shadow was dragging along and was hoisted up towards the surface.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Is that a mer!?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> :3c
> 
> Meet Akira, the soon to be fish fucker

The ship tilted and swayed under the waves in a gentle and almost calming nature. Akira looked over his researcher notes as he leaned against the railing, pen cap dangling from his mouth while he muttered to himself. Seagulls crying overhead added to the sounds of waves crashing against the side of the research vessel. The sound of someone approaching him spurred him out of his thoughts.

“Find anything wrong today, Akira?”

Akira frowned as he gave the person a halfhearted glare. “You make it sound like that’s all I look for, Futaba.” 

The woman smiled at him and moved a few strands of ginger hair out of her face. “I mean, you always find something that’s wrong. Either with the water, the fish, the staff, or all of the above.”

The raven sighed and adjusted his glasses. “I feel like I’m being called out here.”

“Well, I am.”

Akira huffed and opened his mouth to defend himself when suddenly the vessel lurked, turning sideways as if something heavy had hit it. Futaba yelped as she lost her balance, Akira grabbed her and pulled her close to him. He looked around rapidly as the ship groaned before returning to its normal position with a crash.

“What’s going on?” The man looked towards the surprised staff. “Mishima, what did we hit?!”

“There’s nothing around for us to hit!” A man with blue hair and a slightly smaller build than Akira, yelled as he rushed down the stairs. “We were just pulling up the nets when we nearly tipped.”

“Maybe we found treasure!” Futaba beamed as she wiggled away from her brother’s hold.  “C’mon! I wanna see what we caught!”

The pair of men looked at each other and sighed, following after the excited woman. A small group of researchers had gathered at the stern, each of them peering into the water with either confusion of excitement on their faces.

“Have you seen what it is yet, Makoto?” Akira asked as he managed to squeeze up next to a woman with short dark brown hair.

“No, but the crank is pulling it up now.” She replied just as the net started to appear above the water.

“Here it comes!”

The researchers stood back as the net landed on the deck with a heavy thud. Akira pushed past the others and knelt down beside dragnet. He reached out for it just as a small voice caused him to pause.

“Wait, what if it’s something deadly? I don’t want you getting hurt, Aki- I mean, boss.”

“I’ll be fine, Shiho.” He gave her a smile and returned to the net, beginning to untangle it.

He could feel his staff move closer as more of the covering fell away, revealing a set of off white bony plates.

“A sturgeon?” Someone in the crowd said. “That can’t be what we picked up. They live in lakes and along coastlines.”

“But look at the size of it! It’s about the size of a Great White!”

Akira continued to uncover the fish, making sure to keep his hands away from the plates. Multicolored scales eventually fell away to reveal… skin? With a harpoon embedded in its side!?

“Is that a harpoon!?”

“What happened to it!?”

The biologist quickly threw off the rest of the net and let out a noise of shock, which was drowned out by the noise of his co-workers. There, laying on its side as blood pooled beneath it, was a merman with black hair and fair skin.

“Is that a mer!?

“I thought mermaids were just a myth!”

Akira shook his head clear and got up, turning to address the researchers. “We’re going back to the station, now. The mer doesn’t have much time before it has to go back into the water to breath.”

His co-workers scrambled back to their posts and within a few moments, the vessel was sailing full speed back towards the shore. Shiho crouched beside the merman, slowly reaching her hand out and brushing her hand through his hair.

“You poor thing, you didn’t deserve this.”

Makoto bent down to examine the harpoon wound. “I don’t think we can pull it out. We’ll have to saw it off as to not hurt him.”

“I’ve heard tale of mermen and mermaids, but actually managing to see one up close… he’s huge…” Mishima muttered, taking in his size and shape. “I don’t know what type of marine animal he’s mixed with.”

“He’s a mystery fish.” Futaba chimed in, snapping a few pictures.

“Well, whoever he is, we’re helping him.” Akira turned his attention back to the merman, watching as the gills on his neck opened and closed in a rapidly manner. “Only, I don’t know how much time we have left…”

Eventually the sight of the station came into view as they rapidly approached the cost. White dorsal fin shaped buildings stood out starkly against the blue it seemed to be floating upon. Multiple ships sat along docks, bobbing aimlessly in the water.  The ship slowed down as it approached the dock, where more researchers were waiting. Akira helped moved the merman onto to one of the awaiting transports just as the mer startled awake. Akira stared down into frantic brown eyes just as the pupils engulfed the chocolate orbs and a row of… shark teeth quickly flashed. The researcher didn’t even have time to move before the teeth sunk into his shoulder, easily breaking the skin and latching onto him with all his might.

“Akira!” The staff yelled and the raven swallowed down scream after scream.

Mishima was the first to react, pulling out a tranquilizer and stabbing the mer in the back with it. The marine creature jerked before slipping off of the man’s shoulder and back on to the transport. Makoto ordered them to move quickly as Akira held his wounded joint, gray eyes settling on the mer as they took him away.

 _‘It’s not his fault, he was scared…’_ The man kept repeating that he was pulled towards the medical part of the facility.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ryuji, no, don't bite him.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Lemme go...” The mer whined pathetically.

Everything was bright and hazy; lights flew by at a rapid rate as Ryuji lay on whatever the humans had put him on. He didn’t have any strength to crawl away and he thrashed weakly around from the lack of air. The mer heard one of the human quickly command something to another one of the humans. The hybrid whimpered as another bolt of pain shot through his body as the harpoon dug deeper into his body. Something wet wrapped itself around his gills and he felt himself relax slightly, now he could breathe.

Eventually, the movemen stopped and the light was only focused above him. There was a flurry of movement and suddenly there were more hands on him. He lashed out, nearly sinking his teeth into one of the humans. They managed to move away quickly and yelled out an order. Ryuji hissed and bared his teeth and made to attack another one just as something was placed around his mouth. Making a quick noise of confusion, he reached up to pull it away only to be pinned down.

“Lemme go...” The mer whined pathetically.

The humans started talking again as Ryuji struggled to get free, aggravating his wound in the process. He wanted to be out of here and back in the ocean, he couldn’t stand being captured by the land walkers. The mer jolted as a hand suddenly wove through his hair causing him to raise his head and stare up a female with long black hair and kind eyes. She bent down and spoke softly; he wished he knew what she was saying. The female distracted him from the numbness spreading around where his wound was.

Ryuji leaned his head onto her hand on pure instinct; the way she was acting was reminding him of his mother. There was some more chatter and the female turned her head as someone else joined him. Ryuji watched the human closely, pupils engulfing his irises as he smelt blood. Gray eyes, curly black hair… didn’t he bite his shoulder? The male moved his hand and Ryuji flinched, expecting to be hit only to have whatever was around his mouth pulled away.

Ryuji made a confused chirp at the action, feeling the male give him a small pat on the head and moved to where the other humans were. The mer tried turning his head as he felt the harpoon being tugged on.

“W-Wait!” He squeezed his eyes shut as it was pulled out, making a clatter against whatever it was placed it. “Damnit…” Ryuji could feel darkness edging on the sides of his vision. “Not again…” His eyes slid closed as he fell unconscious.  

* * *

_Ryuji was sailing through the water, laughing as he passed other mers along the way. He ignored their yells of being disturbed as he continued speeding along. The hybrid leapt out of the water with grace and power, crashing back into the salt water in a laughing tumble. He floated lazily about, tail wrapping around one of the rocks so the current wouldn’t take him. Ryuji sighs happily and stares up at the surface just as a shadow passes above it. The mer tilts his head in confusion and he moves to see what’s blocked out the sun. The world shifts around him before he reaches the top and the hybrid panics, swimming around frantically as the ocean begins to shrink in size until-_

Ryuji jolts awake and moves up quickly, bashing the back of his head into one of the rocks behind him. He groaned and felt the back of his head, sighing in relief when it came away clean. The mer lifted himself up, grimacing as his side flared up in pain. Ryuji looked down, expecting to see the harpoon still embedded in his side, only to make a noise of confusion when a row of stitches took its place. He gently poked them, blinking in surprise when he found that the skin didn’t move apart.

“Wha…” He shook his head. “I’ll worry about that later. I gotta get-“

Chocolate eyes moved up and he tilted his head in confusion. The ocean wasn’t normally this bright and the sand… it wasn’t normally this rough. Where was he? With a push, he swam out of his shelter and looked around, staring at the many rock structures around him. He easily navigates them before bashing his forehead into some invisible wall.

“The hell?” Ryuji reached out and placed his hand against it. “…This isn’t the ocean…”

The mer’s head whipped around, mind starting to click upon his realization. His heart sank while a noise of distress starting coming from him. Everywhere he turned, he could see the reflection of faux ocean reflected in the tank.

 _‘I’ve been effin’ captured!_ ’ Chocolate eyes flicked around rapidly, body twisting this way and that _. ‘I’m gonna end up being someone’s pet or worse-’_ The hybrid paused as he spotted a human staring at him from the other side of the tank.

The human jolted in alarm to being found out, black, curly hair bouncing slightly from the motion. Ryuji tilted his head and moved closer to the glass surrounding the enclosure. He faintly remembered seeing that hair before when he had woken up to being moved. Black hair, surprised gray eyes behind glasses, and… and he had sunk his teeth right into his shoulder…

“Oh, hell… He probably ain’t gonna help me just because of that…” Ryuji sighed. “It’d be a miracle if I could get outta here.” He grumbled, feeling his body sink down to the sand.

Ryuji lay with his back against the faux sand, not caring that his dorsal fin was digging uncomfortably into the ground. He felt like giving up hope, there was no way he could get the human to understand him… especially not one that he had bitten.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “It’s a hunting hook.” She covered her mouth. “Oh, Akira, I think someone was hunting him.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *lays down*  
> I'm tired

Akira bit back scream after scream as Makoto worked to stitch shut the bite mark. He gripped the sheets of the medical ward bed and flinched as the needle entered his skin for the final time. Makoto tied it and cut of the end, added a numbing shot, and wrapped it up.

“I’m sorry I couldn’t numb it right away. It happened to suddenly.” She apologized as she finished up. “I’m surprised he didn’t tear off your arm.”

“He was weak from the blood lost and he acted on instinct.” Akira sighed as numbness set in. “I’m not going to blame him for something like this. Besides, I’d rather it be me and not the others.” He got off the bed and moved towards the door.

“Wait, Akira, you better not be going back to work.” Makoto quickly stopped him. “You need to rest!”

“I’ll rest after I check up on him.”

The shorter woman shot him a stern glare which has Akira raising his hand in defense.

“Just this one thing and I’ll go rest, Makoto, promise.”

“… I’m holding it to you.” She stepped aside. “Just to check on him, understand?”

“Understood.” Akira moves pass her. “Thank you, Makoto.”

“Uh-huh.”

He shoots her a smile and quickly runs to where the team had put the mer. Akira pushes open the double doors and pauses, taking in the large marine creature strapped down to the table. The mer flicked his tail around, probably trying to catch one of the researchers holding him down as they worked to get the harpoon out. The marine creature has a muzzle on while a couple of sponges and wet towels were wrapped around where his gills were. Shiho was sitting down in front of him, gently running her hands through the mer’s dark hair.

She turned her head once she heard the doors, the woman watched her boss silently in anticipation. The mer jerked his head up to watch him as well and Akira had to fight the urge to flinch as the pupils engulfed the brown eyes. The chief researcher moved slowly, reaching his hands out to unbuckle the muzzle. His heart sank when he felt him flinch until the gag pulled away and Akira couldn’t help but give him a pat, blinking in confusion at how soft the hair felt. Which caused the creature to let out a chirp and turn his head towards him.

“Don’t worry, we’re here to help.” Akira softly said as he watched them tug on the harpoon until it came free.

“Oh, he fainted.”

Hearing Shiho’s voice pulled him from the image of the metal covered in blood and down to the mer. She was right, he had fainted, softly pinning the female’s hand to the table.

“Maybe it was too much for him?” She looked up at her boss.

“Maybe… at least the harpoon is out.” He directed his attention to one of the doctors. “It didn’t strike any organs, did it?”

“Miraculously no. Whoever struck him wanted to make sure he wasn’t too badly injuried.” They place the hook in the tray along with the rod. “Of course, badly injured could mean two different things.” They begin to stitch the wound shut. “Poor thing, even swimming was painful for him.”

“And the muzzle?”

“He tried snapping at one of us, sir, we had to make sure he didn’t bite someone else.”

Akira crosses his arms and tries to respond just as Shiho interrupted him.

“This hook… I think I’ve seen one of these before.”

“Hmm? Where?”

“It’s a hunting hook.” She covered her mouth. “Oh, Akira, I think someone was hunting him.”

A sense of dread fills the room as all eyes turn to the still unconscious mer.

“Well, he’s safe now. We’ll release him into the ocean once he’s fully healed.”

Once the stitches were done and a water proof sealant to prevent the stitches from rotting off too soon. Akira and Shiho stayed with the mer the entire way, walking past scattered amounts of empty, large tanks sat lifeless around the room. They followed him to one of the larger unused tanks reserved for larger fish, where they placed him gently into the water and under one of the fake broken ship props. Shiho stayed and watched him before being called away while Akira observed him a little longer. Taking in the way the salt water made the mer’s hair swayed in the current, he looked almost peaceful among the plants.

Eventually, the male moved away and made his way to one of the many rooms with research materials and began to work.  Hours passed and the chief resisted the urge to hold his shoulder as the numbness began to wear off. His stitches tugged every time he moved his arm and the biologist was surprised that he hadn’t pulled them out yet. With a sigh, Akira readjusted the microscope as he put collected sampling of the mer’s scales under it. Under the scope, he could see each individual scale was awestruck by how beautiful they looked.

“So, not the placoid scales like what sharks have and not the ganoid that sturgeons are covered in…” Akira leaned back into his chair and hummed in thought. “What are you? Perhaps Mishima was right and you are a hybrid...”

His shoulder flared up in pain, seems his body was demanding a break without his say so. Akira muttered to himself as he got up from his chair and left the lab, gently nursing his joint as he opened the door. The boss quietly made his way past several of the tanks housing other marine life and back into the part of the facility where the mer was. The biologist peered into tank and watched as the creature inside of it jolted awake, bashing his head against one of the stone structures on the enclosure.

Akira winced as he heard the mer let out a pained groan and rubs his head. The man watches as the marine creature lifted itself up, showing off the muscles in his arms as the mer inspected his stitched up side. The researcher mirrored the movement, rubbing his shoulder just as the hybrid bashed his forehead into the glass. Akira winched as the mer shakes off the supposed pain and places his hand on the glass. His heart went out to the creature as he made a loud distress sounding noise and started to rapidly twist around frantically as it looked for an exit.

“Is he… crying out for help?” Akira murmured to himself as he quickly pulled out his notepad, jotting down something. The man made an additional note to grab the recording from the cameras as well.

 Akira moved closer to the tank just as the creature turned to face him. The raven jumped slightly upon being spotted; he faintly registered that the sound had stopped as the mer moved closer. Akira stared into beautiful brown eyes as the marine animal chirped and sank to the bottom of the tank.

 _‘D-Did he just say something?’_ The boss thought as he descended to the spiral stairs to stare at his movements. _‘Is he… frustrated?’_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Akira is so entranced by Ryuji that he forgot about his shoulder hurting.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Humans are death to mers alike, but for some unknown reason… Ryuji felt safe around that human and him alone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think this chapter tried to end me because it refused to be written properly.

Ryuji dragged his hands over his face and up into his dark hair. With a groaned, he racked his memory for anything Ann and the others had taught him about communicating with the land walkers. His long tail flopped against the glass as he thought.

* * *

 

_The part of the ocean they’re in is nestled next to one of the sunken ships littering the seafloor. A beautiful Red Lionfish mer with platinum blond hair and bright blue eyes swims around, muttering to herself in a language Ryuji has yet to grasp or understand._

_Ann crossed her arms and stared down the hybrid with an impressed glare. “Ryuji, you’re going to want to know how to talk to them sooner or later.”_

_The dark haired mer waved her off as he buried his body deeper into the warm sand. “Nah. I ain’t ever gonna go up there.  So, there ain’t a point in it.”_

_“You never know when you’ll need it!” She lashes out, spines flaring up put of annoyance._

_Ryuji barely moves away in time to avoid the Red Lionfish mer’s spines. “Hey! Watch it! Iain’t in the mood to get poisoned!”’_

_The mermaid flicks her tail and crosses her arms. “It’s either I teach you or Akechi does. Which one would you rather have? My spines or Akechi’s stingers?”_

_The hybrid growls, showing off the row of sharp teeth, before throwing up his arms in defeat. “Fine, fine. So, what do we start with first?”_

* * *

 

Everything after that is a blank and Ryuji curses his short attention span.

“Shit…” He slams his tail against the glass in frustration

There’s a clatter on the other side that grabs the mer’s attention.

“The hell?”

He pushes himself off of the fake sand and peeks into the room on the other side. It’s human from before, Ryuji guessed that he followed him down here. The dark haired hybrid watched him collect whatever was on the ground before turning back to the glass, only to startle and drop everything again. They stared at each other, neither of them unmoving. Ryuji tilts his head and the human mimics it.

“Hey… Don’t copy me.”

The human writes something in his, what did Ann say it was? A buuk? Ryuji can’t help but move closer, trying to peak into the buuk, only to be stopped by the glass. He chirps and frowns, rubbing at his forehead in annoyance as he taps on glass to regain the human’s attention. The land walker raises his head and blinks, fixing the hybrid with a surprised look.  Ryuji keeps staring, clearly waiting for the curly haired human to do something. The mer huffed and moved away from the window just as the male got up and quickly and ascended the stairs.

“What the… The hell is he going?” Ryuji mutters, but he can’t help but follow the human.  “Weirdest human I’ve ever met…” He keeps his brown eyes on him at all times only to pause when he felt the water ripple.

The mer jerked his head up and spotted the watery blurred image of the human above him. He tilted his head in confusion and kept staring at him. Ryuji couldn’t help himself, he moved closer out of curiosity. He ignored the warning signs in the back of his head as he stared, watching as the land walker pulled out his buuk and began doing something.

Ryuji tilted his head and angled his body to try and get a better look of what was on the thing; only for his wound to throb in pain. He sank back down with a grumble, brown eyes glaring down at his stomach in annoyance. The dark-haired mer moved silently closer to the man until he was right under the buuk. Ryuji quietly reached his hand up and tapped the back of it.

The land walker jolts and moves the object, staring down at him with dark gray eyes. Ryuji couldn’t help but fall for them; they were captivating (The hybrid mentally pats himself on the back for using one of Yusuke’s favorite words.) He could also see why Ann spent so much time on the surface, humans were… pretty. The moment lasts for a few more minutes before a sound of another voice grabs both of their attention. Fearing more humans, Ryuji doves back underwater and sent up a wave of water on the land walker.

Humans are death to mers alike, but for some unknown reason… Ryuji felt safe around that human and him alone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Useless bisexual Merman Ryuji has appeared.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Great, he had a crush on the mer.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
> 
> I HATE THIS CHAPTER  
> THIS STUBBORN CHILD REFUSED TO BE WRITTEN  
> HAAAAAAAAAAAAA

Akira stared at the long spiked tail as the mer continuously pressed it against the glass. The researcher moved closer to get a better detail on his scales as he pulled out his journal. He began sketching it, looking up every now and then from the paper. Just as Akira finished, the mer slammed his tail against the glass, starting him and making him drop his journal. The man quickly picked it up and turned back to the enclosure only to jump and drop it again as he saw the mer looking at him. The marine animal titled his head and Akira couldn’t help but mimic the action.

The hybrid chirped and Akira writes something down quickly. There was a soft bump followed by another chirp, this one lower and more annoyed sounding. Akira raises his head to look at him and shot him a surprised look. Seems the mer was curious as it tried to move closer to him. They stared at one another before the marine creature huffed and moved away.

“Wait!” Akira quickly ascended the stairs and made his way to the top of the enclosure.

The human held onto the railing as he ascended the steps up to the platform above the tank. His shoulder ached as he over extended it, causing him to pause at the top and rub gently at the stitches. Akira slowly made his way over to the platform, using the railing to climb up. The man took off his shoes and placed them nearby, sitting down and allowing his toes to drag across the water in small ripples. He reached over and pulled out his journal, sketching a small image of the mer from memory.

“What is it about you that makes me so…. Interested?”

There was a faint movement at the back of the book and Akira jolts before moving it. Gray eyes lock with brown eyes as they stare at one another in absolute silence. The mer’s eyes… Akira had never seen such a beautiful shade of brown before. The human can feel himself leaning down unconsciously, eyes never leaving the marine creature.

“Akira?”

The male jolts, looking over to where he could hear Makoto coming up the stairs. The researcher opened his mouth to respond to her, only to get a face full of water as the Mer fled into the water. Coughing harshly and shaking his head, Akira mentally sighed before turning to face Makoto.

“Yes?”

“What are you doing-Why are you soaked?”

“Um…” The man moves his hair out of his face “Well…”

Her tone turns from concerned to serious as soon as her eyes narrow. “Were you working?”

“N-no?”

“Akira Kurusu!”

“W-well, I wans’t working! I was just… checking on the mer?”

“Sounds like work.”

“When you put it like that…”

“Akira.”

The curly haired boss shivered at the tone and collected his things quickly. “Sorry, sorry. I’ll go rest-”

“You said that last time.” Makoto crosses her arms. “I’m sending Futaba to keep an eye on you.”

“What? I don’t need to be babysat.” He paused on the stairs and sent her a raised eyebrow. “I am the boss you know.”

“I know, but I can count several times when you needed to be told not to do something.” She raised her hand. “There was that one time with the octopus, and another with the sea urchin, and then there was that eel-”

“Okay, okay! I get it!” He huffs and pouts, retreating down to the lower level.

Akira sighed as he settled down onto the couch in the breakroom. He kept seeing flashes of those beautiful brown eyes and felt his face heat up.

_Great, he had a crush on the mer._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *lays down and sobs*


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “I’m Akira… A-ki-ra. What’s your name?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's been a month, I can explain
> 
> Writer's block and much drama

The shade of the large fake sunken ship hid the mer well as Ryuji wiggled around and buried his body into the sand, sighing softly at the relaxing feeling. This place was still strange to the mer, he had explored the fake ocean and bumped into every surface in the process. With a huff, Ryuji buried himself deeper until only his dorsal fin, eyes and hair were visible. The hybrid closed his eyes, thinking back to his friends in the ocean.

* * *

_ “Ow! Akechi!” _

_ “Hmm? Oh! My apologies, Ryuji, they have a tendency to float away.” _

_ Ryuji rubbed at his arm as he glared softly at the Pacific sea nettle jellymer’s stingers. He watched them gently drift around, some moving towards him again, before switching his gaze the chestnut haired creature’s eyes. Akechi smiles softly, pulling his stingers closer to his body. His ear twitched and turned to the side upon hearing Ann’s laughter.  _

_ “Yusuke-kun, I believe the lobster has grown attached to you.” _

_ “It -ouch- appears so.” _

_ Ryuji turned and spotted the pale orange and black speckled body of Haru, her spotted tail fins fanned out against the light blue of the water. Near the leopard betta mermaid, on the seabed, sat Yusuke with his blue and yellow striped body pulled up to his chest and a… lobster clenched tight around the tail fin. Ann covered her mouth, trying to hide her giggles from the Emperor Angelfish mer. Yusuke huffed and tried to pry the  _ _ crustacean from his tail only to flinch as it kept up it’s grip. _

_ “Ryuji, I require your assistance.”  _

_ “Yeah, yeah, just hold it straight for me.” Ryuji lazily swam down and settled his lower body on the sand as he tried to work open the pinchers. “Dude, did you piss it off or somethin’?” _

_ “I just -ouch- wanted a few of the shells -be careful, please- nearby. It must’ve sensed my tail as prey. _

_ Ryuji eventually managed to pry it off, only to have his hand constantly slapped by the lobster. “....Can i eat it?” _

_ “Please no. I don’t want to hear you crunch into the shell.” _

_ The hybrid shot her a smirk and placed the marine creature in his mouth, adding a small amount of pressure to just make it creak a little. _

_ “Ryuji, don’t!” Ann covered her ears and backed away, glaring daggers at the merman. _

_ Ryuji chuckled and pulled it from his mouth, tossing it over to Yusuke who held out his hands to catch it. “Chill, I was only teasin’.” _

_ The mermaid didn’t find it funny, evidence by her spines starting to flare out. The dark haired hybrid quickly fled with the blonde chasing after him. _

_ “Ann! Ann, I’m sorry! Don’t- YOWCH!” _

_ “That’s what you get!” _

* * *

Ryuji slowly opened his eyes and felt a pang of sadness when he didn’t see his friends or his mother curled up asleep nearby. He growled in frustration, slamming his tail against the side of the of the fake ship, making it shake and rumble in the process. His stomach chose at this time to growl, loudly, reminding its owner of how empty it was.

“There ain’t anythin’ to eat ‘round here.” He told his stomach as he curled up into a tight ball. “Stop belly achin’.”

His ear shot up as he hear the sound of something echoing above him. Slowly uncurling himself, the hybrid poked his head out of the structure and looked up. The echoes continued until suddenly stopping, Ryuji tilted his head in curiosity. He quietly lifted his body out of the sand and swam up, quietly poking his head out of the water and looking around. Ryuji paused as he spotted the human from yesterday sitting on something hovering above the water. The human spotted him and pulled something from  shiny looking container next to him. 

Ryuji’s ears perked up as a piece of halibut was pulled from it. The mer moved closer, eyes locked onto the fish dangling in the air. The male gently tossed it into the air, Ryuji quickly leapt out of the water and snapped his jaws around. He splashed back down, eating his meal as he happily chirped. Ryuji resurfaced again, licking his lips while he moved closer to the human.  The curly haired male said something, which the mer didn’t understand, as he reached into the container again.

With each fish thrown, Ryuji moved closer and closer until he was right below the human. Wide gray eyes stared down in brown for a few passing minutes. Against his better judgement, the hybrid lifted himself up onto the platform until he’s nose to nose with the human. The male’s face turns a bright red and for a second, Ryuji think he might be sick until he remembers that’s how Ann acted when talking about how cute some of the humans were.

He begins to talk and the mer scrunches up his face in confusion, which causes the human to stop. It takes a few minutes before the male speaks again.

“I’m Akira… A-ki-ra. What’s your name?”

Now Ryuji was thanking his brain for retaining something from Ann’s english lesson.

“R-Ryuji.” It took him a bit to respond, but the shocked look Kira gave him was worth it. “Name Ryuji.”

“Ryuji?”

The hybrid nodded cheerfully, glad that the human got it on the first time. “Kira smurt.”

“Smurt? Oh, you mean smart.”

“Smurt.” Ryuji moved closer to Kira, looking around his neck for gills. “No Gills? How breath?”

“We have-”

Ryuji’s ears moved back. “Word?”

Kira blinked and repeated it, the mer huffed and shook his head.

“Not know word.”

“Oh! You have-” Another word unrecognizable to the mer. “english.” He leaned back and laid down against the platform. “Interesting.”

Ryuji huffed, gills flaring up slightly, as he followed Kira up until he was laying on his chest. “Teach.”

“Hmm?”

“Kira teach Ryuji.” The mer flicked his tail. “Wanna talk more to Kira.”

“You want me to teach you?” Kira raised his head, blush returning once he saw Ryuji.

The dark haired hybrid nodded vigorously and smiled. “Teach! Teach!”

“Alright, alright. I’ll teach you.” He smiled back and leaned back on his arms. “Are all mers like you?”

“Ryuji like Ryuji! No other!”


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lord have mercy, Ryuji was heavy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ryuji is still a dog
> 
> AU or not
> 
> Pet the boyyo

Akira stares at the mer laying happily on his chest, brown eyes shining after hearing him agree to helping him. Sitting up slightly, he looked down Ryuji’s back and eyed the spines. They lined from the middle of his back all the way down to his tail fin. Akira stared down, gently moving his hands down them, wincing slightly as he managed to cut his finger on one of them.

 

_ ‘So, they’re sharp enough to get him out of any net.’ _

 

Ryuji moved his body so that  he was draped over Akira like a blanket. “Why Kira touch spines? Kira wanna get hurt?”

 

“Hmm? Oh. No, I was, uh, caught off guard by them.”

 

_ Lord have mercy, Ryuji was heavy _ . Akira could feel his back protesting from just a few seconds on the mer on it. He straightened up and turned his head, only to have a ear fin slap him in the face.

 

“Spines for protection.” Ryuji slapped his tail against Akira’s leg. “What human use?”

 

“We built things to protect us.”

 

“What kinda things?”

 

Akira thought for one that wasn’t too violent for the mer; he hummed as Ryuji climbed over Akira to look him in the face with tilted head.

 

“Humans have...alarms, to alert us of any danger.”

 

“What word?”

 

“Alarm?”

 

Ryuji moved closer. “Word.”

 

God, the mer’s eyes were a beautiful shade of brown up close. “U-uh. Alarm.”

 

Ear fins pressed to the side of the mer’s head and he stared at Akira’s lips. “Again.”

 

“Alarm.”

 

“A-la-rum”

 

Akira beamed, smiling brightly as Ryuji repeated the word over and over again. The mer looked at him, waiting for confirmation that he had said it correctly.

“Yes, just like that.”

 

“‘Alarm!” Ryuji smiled, showing off his teeth as his tail slapped against the male’s thigh in glee.

 

Akira couldn’t help it, he gently reached up and gave the mer a pat on the head. He froze, brown eyes blinking as the human showed him affection. The researcher jumped and quickly took his hand off of Ryuji’s head.

 

“S-Sorry, I shouldn’t have-”

 

“Again. Do it again.”

 

“This?” He patted Ryuji again, a faint flush appearing on his face as the mer leaned his head into the pat. “Wow.” Akira scratched lightly, which the marine creature seemed to enjoy it as he mimicked a dog wagging its tail. “Do you like that?”

 

“Kira keep goin’.”

 

The human chuckled and continued, studying the way the mer reacted. Ryuji looked content, pressing his head until into the scratched as he purred. Akira could feel himself falling deeper and deeper into the pit of love when he paused.

 

“Wait a minute… D-don’t you need water to breathe?”

 

Ryuji blinked for a few seconds before scrambling into the water. The human watched in shock, staring at the water just as he burst out laughing. The mer glared at him as he resurfaced, ear fins flaring up as his face flushed red.

 

“Why Kira laugh!?”

 

“D-Did you forget you need to breathe?”

 

“No!”

 

Akira’s chuckles die down and he waves Ryuji closer to him, watching as the mer glide across the water flawlessly. The hybrid keeps is eyes on the human, waiting for him to make a move. The researcher pats his lap and slides back to make room as the marine creature lifts himself out of the water. Ryuji’s claws dug into the open gaps of the platform and placed on either side of Akira’s hips, boxing him in. The human dragged his hands through the dark hair again, lightly scratching at random spots. Once again, the mer leaned his head into the movements.

 

Akira, being wary of the spines, pulls Ryuji’s body further onto the platform. He made his way down the mer’s back, dragging his blunt nails between the spines and random patches of skin. The effect was instantaneous, Ryuji’s tail slammed against the metal as he arches his back, groaning softly as the treatment. If Akira could compare how the hybrid look, he’d say he was a mix between a dog and a cat. He peeked over Ryuji’s shoulder, seeing the old scratches on his back.

 

“Must be hard to scratch like this with claws.” He moved down, where skin met scales , and watched as the tal increased in slams and thuds. “What are they for?”

 

Ryuji rolls over onto his back and Akira winces as he feels the spines dig into his legs. “Coral and rock… Kira…”

 

The human gets the message and gives the marine creature belly scratches. He purrs and arches his back again, claws reaching out to dig their way into Akira’s lab coat. The raven looks down at the melting and content merman, jumping slightly as he feels Ryuji’s bottom half wrap around his waist. By the time Akira moves his hand back, the mer is a melting and purring mess in his lap. His eyes were closed and his gills flared up with each inhale and exhale.

 

For a few seconds, he worries that Ryuji needs to breathe until he moans softly while brown eyes slide open.

 

“Are you okay?”

 

He responses with a slow nod. “Thank. No other mer do this.”

 

“They don’t? Do they all have claws?”

 

Ryuji shook his head and raises his hand to Akira’s face, showing off the gray, black, and white nails, while he opened his mouth. It didn’t take the human long to understand.

 

“Oh! Oh…” Akira frowned. “In the end, you’re still a predator… But who taught you english?”

 

“Friends. Ones who ain’t scared.” The mer yawned and stretched. “Kira nice. Kira friend.”

 

“I’m your friend?”

 

Ryuji nodded and smiled. “Friend. First human friend.”

 

“I am?” Akira softly smiled. “Thank you, Ryuji.”

 

They stayed like that for a few minutes, the humming of the AC echoing through the silence. Akira stared down at the mer, looking at the stitches on his stomach, and felt the heat of anger boil in his stomach. He wanted to find whoever was hunting him and turn them into Sae-san, after a few punches to the face. Even though, only a few humans were aware of the marine creatures, they were considered highly illegal to hunt. Akira drummed his fingers on Ryuji’s stomach while he hummed in thought.

 

“Akira? Are you up there?”

 

Suddenly, Ryuji jerked up at Makoto’s voice, head turning to where she was coming up stairs.

 

“W-Wait, Ryuji, it’s just-”

 

Too late. The dark haired mer scrambled out of his lap and back into the water.


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Kira.” Ryuji’s voice was small and he could tell by the way Kira flinched that he managed to gain his attention. “Ryuji sorry.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *lays on the ground*
> 
> Sup

The past few days being stuck in the human habitat wasn’t so bad to the mer. At least he had a place to sleep and plenty of fish to eat. Kira was so nice to him and he wasn’t afraid of the predator either. Everytime the human came to visit him, Ryuji would greet him by jumping out of the water and hugging the man. Kira would let him eat as he studied him, normally the mer didn’t like the attention, choosing to stay out of any kind of spot light. But having all of Kira’s attention on him made him want to show off, stand up tall and making sure the light hit his scales just right. Kira would also draw pictures of him, Ryuji saw them when he’d peek over his shoulder. The human had very recently taken up teaching him more english, which the mer had been working very hard on remember everything he had said.

 

Currently the hybrid was out of the tank, lower body curled around the human’s waist, as he lay beside his left hip. Ryuji yawned and stretched, claws digging into the platform while his tongue rolled out over his sharp teeth. He purrs when he settles back down, feeling Kira’s hands drag through his dark hair.

 

“Okay, how about we try a few words?”

 

Ryuji shook his head. “Tired.”

 

“Alr-”

 

“Akira, are you up here?”

 

Ryuji jolts up, looking at the far wall where he heard the voice. Everything in his body is screaming at him to go back into the water, that only Kira can see the mer. As he makes a move to untangle himself from the human, a warm palm find itself on his back.

 

“Wait, Ryuji! Do you trust me?”

 

He jerks his head to look at Kira, brown eyes constantly flicking between him and the water. A few seconds pass before he gives an answer.

 

“Ryuji… Ryuji trust Kira.”

 

“Okay. Can you please settle down?” The raven turns to address the human wherever they’re hiding. “I’m here, Makoto!”

 

The hybrid wills himself to settle down, although it’s very hard once he can hear the footsteps of several humans making their way up here. He whimpers, nudging his body closer to Kira as his body shakes.

 

He trusts him. Kira wouldn’t betray his trust like this.

 

_ ‘But what if those are the things that hurt you?’ _ His frazzled brain betrays him.  _ ‘They’ve come back to finish the job.’ _

 

Ryuji would feel his spines start to elongate as his mind begin to shift into a mass amount of scenarios.  _ He needs to go. He needs to hide down into the sand like his mother taught him. Humans are coming. HUMANS ARE COMING. _ The thoughts seem to leave as Kira runs his hand through his hair and Ryuji turns to look at him. He’s offering the mer a soft and small smile while he makes attempts to calm the hybrid. The mer trills and moves his body to lay his torso on Kira’s lap.

 

“Akira? What are you- Oh! Oh, lord the mer.”

 

Ryuji watches as a tall female stops short on the steps, her red eyes were fixed on him in a mix of shock and surprise. In order to not scare the female, he flattens himself and lowers his ears. 

 

Kira turns to face her. “Hello, Makoto, did you need me for something?”

 

“No, I was wondering where you- why is the mer on you?” 

 

“Makoto, this is Ryuji. Ryuji, this is Makoto.”

 

“Koto.” The hybrid repeats, brown eyes still glued on the female.

 

Koto blinks. “H-he can talk?”

 

Koto smells weird, the dark haired mer concludes. The female smelt like those old human structures in the water with all the brown spots on it. Ryuji raises his body so that his chin is resting on Kira’s shoulder, his lower half curls more around the human’s body. He opens his mouth to talk just as he hears more humans approaching. Kira must’ve sensed his tension, because suddenly there’s a soothing hand on his head.

 

“You’re doing good, Ryuji. Just a few of my friends coming up.”

 

“Kira friends?” He rumbles, watching as a few new human joined Koto. “Oh…”

 

One of them, a tiny, long haired bright orange haired female, smelt like Kira and Ryuji vaguely wondered if they were podmates. Another one, this one looked timid and frail with a hair color  that reminded the hybrid of Yusuke’s, smelt like fear and was overpowering everything else. The final smell was from the long black haired female and it was sweet and not in a sickening sense. The closest he could compare it to was Ann’s. Now there were too many scents each of them bouncing off the other as soon as they spotted him. It was starting to give the mer a headache and he whined, bringing his forehead to rest in Kira’s shoulder.

 

“Wow! Akira managed to befriend the merman!”

 

The loud voice of one of them caused his ears to close and lower, Ryuji whined.  _ Too loud for his tastes. _

 

“Futaba, please, keep your voice down.”

 

“Sorry, Akira, but how did you manage it?”

 

“Well, I-”

 

Everything was starting to blur together as Ryuji smelt the scents get close to himself and Kira. He whined again, curling his body closer to his humans. Everything was getting too much, far too much for him to handle.

 

“Kira.” Ryuji’s voice was small and he could tell by the way Kira flinched that he managed to gain his attention. “Ryuji sorry.”

 

The mer leapt away from the raven and splashed down into the water before, where he quickly swam down into the shadows of the sunken ship and buried himself into the fake sand. He tried, he really did, but… too many smells and voices. He just... couldn’t handle it. Ryuji closed his eyes with a low whine. He fucked up and now Kira probably didn’t want to see him anymore.

 

Now he was alone in a new space with the only friend he made gone.

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> aw ryuji baby


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Thank you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I FORGOT THAT IT WAS MERMAY
> 
> SO I'M CALLING MYSELF OUT TO TRY AND FINISH THIS

A few days had past since Ryuji had hidden himself away from the humans. While most of the researchers didn’t see a problem with it, Akira felt like he had caused the sudden change. Today, the human sat on the platform above the water, staring down into the tank with a solemn look on his face. Akira sighed and placed his fist against his cheek while lazily dangling a piece of halibut from his fingertips. He was hoping the food would drag Ryuji out of his hiding place. Feeling defeated, he made to get up only to pause as he hear the water ripple behind him.

 

Ryuji stared at him, the bottom part of his face was still submerged under the water, but the look in his eyes stuck Akira in the heart.

 

“Ryuji, you’re back.”

 

His ears fins fell and for a second, the human feared he would retreat back in the water.

 

“Ryuji sorry.”

 

“Y-you’re sorry?” Akira was bewildered.

 

Ryuji nods and sinks more of his face into the water. “Kira prolly hates Ryuji.”

 

“No no, I could never hate you. I was so worried that I scared you off for good.” Akira approaches the water and sits down on the platform. “I’m so sorry, I wasn’t clearly thinking about how you would handle the others. Can you forgive me?”

 

Ryuji was quiet, staring intensely at the human before making his way over to him. Akira’s breath hitched as he approached. The mer easily lifted himself out of the water and flopped down on the raven’s legs, Akira had missed the welcoming weight.

 

“Ryuji forgive Kira.”

 

The human beamed and wrapped his arms around Ryuji while he moved back to lay on the platform, uncaring of the pain as the mer’s spines dug into his arms.

 

“Thank you.”

 

Ryuji trills as he returns the hug and nuzzled his face into the crook of Akira’s neck. The pair stayed like that for sometime, completely engulfed in the quiet calm. The human lazily dragged his fingers through Ryuji’s hair, causing the mer to purr in the process. Eventually, Akira reached over and plucked a halibut from the container. Ryuji’s ear fins shot up as he smelt it and he rose to stare at it.

 

“Hungry? You haven’t eaten in a while.”

 

Ryuji shimmies his body closer to the meal, practically crawling over Akira to reach it. The raven laughs and hands it to him, smiling softly as the mer quickly consumes it.

 

“Missed Kira.” Ryuji says after he finishes his meal.

 

“I missed you too.”

 

“Kira best human.”

 

“Ryuji best mer.”

 

The mer trilled, hugged him, and pressed their foreheads together. Akira could feel a blush creeping up on his cheeks as he stared into Ryuji’s bright, smiling eyes. Suddenly, the hybrid jumped into the water, startling the human as he watched. 

 

“Did you forget you needed water again?”

 

“No!”

 

Akira laughs, missing the way Ryuji glared at him and sank below the water. The human yelps as a wave of water soaks him. Akira slowly moves his hair out of his face to see the mer laughing. The researcher chuckles and the pair spend time splashing one another until Akira’s shift ends. He turns to bid Ryuji a farewell, only to have him rise out of the water and bring him in for a tight hug.

 

“Thank you.” He says through his mass amount of trills.

 

“You’re welcome.”


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Eh? What’s this?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am gonna start doing smaller chapters so I don't burn myself out as easily
> 
> Hopefully, that's okay and who knows
> 
> I might write longer chapters in the future

A week passes but Ryuji hardly knows it, happily chatting the days away with Kira. He was glad that he hadn’t scared him off. Right now, Ryuji swam around the tank, trying to get rid of his excess energy. He paused as the water rippled, signaling something or someone was in the tank with him. Curious, the mer moves to where the ripples came from and trills as loud as he can. Kira’s in the tank with him, surrounded in some sort of human stuff.

 

Ryuji swims quickly over to him and shoves his face into his human’s neck, chirping happily as he wraps his body around him. A hand ruffles his hair and the mer smiles, he presses his forehead against the thing over his human’s face.

 

“Eh? What’s this?” He reaches for it but Kira grabs his hand and shakes his head. “Humans need this?” A nod is his answer. “And this.” Ryuji’s claw tapped at the thing in the human’s mouth and got another nod. “Humans are weird.”

 

The mer gets another hair ruffle as the pair sink to the bottom of the tank, causing a plume of sand to fly up. Ryuji waved the sand out of his face with a scrunched up face. Kira tapped his forehead, gaining his attention, before pointing at his lap.

 

“Want me to lay down?” The mer settled on the human’s lap, unwrapping his body to lay on his stomach. “Like this?”

 

Kira nodded and moved to check at the wound on his back. Ryuji twisted his body to try and look, only to have the human’s hand push him down. He grumbled and crossed his arms, using them as a pillow against the sand. Ryuji felt his human poke and prodded at his back before pressing his thumb against the closed wound. The mer huffed and slapped him lightly with his tail, Kira gave him a pat on the back as an apology.

 

The human flipped him over carefully and checked the other side, Ryuji wiggled out of impatience. Eventually, Kira raised his hands, giving the mer the go ahead to move. The hybrid rolls out of his lap, making sure to be careful that his spines don’t cut the human. Kira shakes his head before swimming up the surface. Ryuji swims off after him, keeping close to him as he breaches the water and climbs out of the water.

 

The mer intends to jump up after him, but pauses as he spots Kira’s friends. He sinks back into the water as a spike of anxiety goes through his body. Ryuji whines lowly, staring as Kira takes off the the thing on his back and talks to the other humans. Taking a deep breath, he leapt up onto the platform and buries his face in the other male’s neck. He feels Kira jolt and place a hand on his head.

 

Ryuji trills and purrs, shoving his face deeper into his human’s neck while he wraps his body around his waist. The mer’s too focused on his affection to hear what the others are talking about. Ryuji’s so content that he falls asleep against Kira, feeling very happy and safe around him.


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “How fussy is your merman boyfriend?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Since I'm going to NY for a week, I decided to upload this.

As much as Akira loved Ryuji, he really wish he would sit still for a while.

“Is something wrong, Akira?” Came Makoto’s voice from the mask.

“No, he’s just being his usual self.” Akira manages to get Ryuji to lay down.

“Aw, is your boyfriend too much to handle?”

The researcher rolls his eyes at Futaba’s teasing and goes about checking the status of Ryuji’s stitching.

“It’s healing well.” He presses his fingers against it. “And the stitches are still holding up.”

Ryuji slaps him with his tail, clearly stating his annoyance with the treatment. Akira pats his back and rolls the mer over to check the other stitching.

“And this one is holding up as well. I think these can get taken out sometime this week.”Ryuji wiggles around and the human knows he’s starting to get impatient. “Alright, Ryuji’s getting fussy, so I’m done.” He raises his hands, allowing the mer to roll away at stare at him.

“How fussy is your merman boyfriend?”

“Futaba, just for that, I’m not making you curry.”

“I can get some from Sojiro.” The researcher can picture the woman sticking her tounge out at him.

Akira shakes his head and swims to the surface, unaware of the mer trailing behind him. He pulls off the mask and swims over the the platform, Makoto extends her hand and helps him up onto the platform. Akira shakes his head, sending water droplets onto his friends and pulls the tank off his back.

“You said we could take out his stitches.” Mishima spoke. “But that also means we have to release him back into the ocean.”

“Yeah.” A heavy weight settled in Akira’s stomach. “I know.”

He suddenly jolts as he feels Ryuji settles against his back, the human reaches up and gently runs his fingers through the mer’s dark hair. The hybrid trills and purrs all while shoving his face deeper into Akira’s neck. Hearing stifled snickers from Futaba, he turned to face her.

“What?”

“He’s… he’s…” Her explanation kept getting cut off from her own laughter

“Ryuji’s trilling.” Mishima explains. “It means he’s really close to you or he…”

“He what?” Akira narrowed his eyes.

Futaba blurts out. “Or that means you’re his mate!”

The researcher chokes on his breath as his face grows red. Did Ryuji think he was his mate or were they just close? He turned to ask the mer, only to see him fast asleep on his back.

“How do you guys know this?”

“Internet.”

“S-Someone told me.”

Several pairs of eyes move to stare at Mishima, who shrank back under the attention. He stuttered out that he needed to leave and bolted down the stairs.

“Anyway…” Makoto slowly spoke. “I found an old journal from someone who spent time and even lived with mermaids and men. They said that ‘Trilling is the mer language for affection, used towards mers they are very close to/are mates with.’” She softly smiled. “All that time you’ve been spending with Ryuji means he’s grown safe and close to you.”

“Is that why you asked me to check up on his stitches?”

“Yes, we couldn’t chance him snapping and hurting someone.”

Akira sighs, but shrugs it off to look back at the mer. He fought back the urge to kiss his forehead and gave his hair a ruffle instead. Knowing how much Ryuji cared for him made his heart soar, but the thought of never seeing the mer again once he was released brought to back down into the pit of his stomach. He’d have to say goodbye to him.

 

**Author's Note:**

> Mer Au Start!


End file.
